💻 BDC in SAP ABAP – Batch Data Communication

BDC stands for Batch Data Communication. 

It is an old but effective method in SAP ABAP used to transfer large volumes of data from a non-SAP system to an SAP system. The core concept behind BDC is screen recording – we record user interactions (like creating a material) and loop those steps to automate bulk data entries.

🔍 Purpose of BDC

The main goal of BDC is data migration – for example, if you manually create one material using transaction MM01, BDC allows you to automate the creation of 10,000+ materials without manual intervention.

🧩 How Does BDC Work?

✅ Step-by-Step Process:

1. Screen Recording (SHDB)
   Use transaction code SHDB to record the steps of a transaction (e.g., MM01 – Material Creation).

2. Generate Program from Recording
   Transfer the screen recording steps into an ABAP program using SHDB.

3. Read Data from File
   Upload data (e.g., Excel, .txt file) from your local system into SAP.

4. Loop Through Data & Call Recording
   Loop through uploaded data and use the BDC steps inside that loop.

🔧 BDC Methods

1. Call Transaction Method

📌 Program Example: ZBDC_10_12_MORNING_WEEKENDS

CALL TRANSACTION 'MM01' USING bdc_tab
                   MODE    'A/N/E'
                   UPDATE  'A/S/L'
                   MESSAGES INTO bdcmsgcoll.

• Mode Options:

  • A – Show all screens

  • N – No screen (background processing)

  • E – Show only error screens

• Update Options:

  • A – Asynchronous (Commit Work)

  • S – Synchronous (Commit Work and Wait – Recommended)

  • L – Local Update

• Log Storage Structure:
  ➤ BDCMSGCOLL stores the BDC processing messages (success/error log)

2. Session Method

📌 Program Example: ZBDC_10_12_MORNING_SESSION

This method creates a session that you must process manually via T-Code SM35.

🔁 Key Function Modules:

1. BDC_OPEN_GROUP – Start the session (group)

2. BDC_INSERT – Insert the transaction step

3. BDC_CLOSE_GROUP – Close session after all data is processed

➡ After running the program, go to SM35, select the session, and process it.

❗ Disadvantages of BDC

• ⚠️ Screen-Dependent: Relies on UI layout (screens, field positions)

• ⚠️ Not Upgrade-Proof: Screens may vary across SAP versions (ECC vs S/4 HANA)

• ⚠️ System-Specific: Might not work across different SAP systems

🛑 Conclusion: Due to these limitations, BDC is considered outdated and is generally replaced by BAPIs, which offer a more stable and SAP-supported alternative for data migration.